Early film-making in the frame

The scene in the Octagon during the Dunedin Peace Day parade, Saturday, July 19, 1919. A still from Henry Gore’s film Peace Day Procession.

THE CAMERA IN THE CROWD: FILMING NEW ZEALAND IN PEACE AND WAR, 1895—1920Christopher PugsleyOratia Books

A hefty tome, The Camera in the Crowd: Filming New Zealand in Peace and War, 1895 — 1920 rewards both a long read and a quick flick through the pages.

The book playfully incorporates a sequence of thumbnail images on each page that form a flip-book film of a mounted parade in 1914.

Author Chris Pugsley, well known for his military histories, has a long-standing passion for film and film history, and it shows. He writes engagingly of the first 25 years of filming in New Zealand, the cadre of professional cameramen and the fierce competition between ambitious theatre owners keen to cash in on the new craze.

Along the way he throws up many arresting facts. Who knew, for instance, that the Salvation Army was Australasia’s pre-eminent film producer in the early 20th century?

The book’s 500-odd pages are laden with images and, in another thoughtful design element, margin icons indicate where to access a film online at Nga Taonga Sound and Vision, allowing readers to pause and view what they’re reading about.